It looks like there will be a clean house in the Mets dugout next year.
Not only will Terry Collins be let go after the season, pitching coach Dan Warthen will not be invited back either, according to Mike Puma of the NY Post.
Warthen, who is the longest tenured coach on the Mets staff, was elevated to the club in June, 2008, when he replaced Rick Peterson the day Willie Randolph was given his walking papers.
But he survived Omar Minaya’s administration with Jerry Manuel in the dugout and was by Collins’ side for seven years.
And frankly, this was a long time coming. Earlier this season, this space advocated Warthen’s removal in favor of Triple-A coach Frank Viola. According to Puma, Viola is not being considered a candidate at this time, but that could change, when a search starts and a new manager is in place.
More importantly, general manager Sandy Alderson and the Wilpons are recognizing there needs to be a regime change in the dugout from top to bottom. Although hitting coach Kevin Long could possibly stay on with a new manager, more likely there will be an entire new coaching staff in place.
And that’s the way it should be, because any new manager, particularly one from outside the organization, will want to bring in his own guys on his staff. Now, the way Alderson works, the manager won’t be picking his whole staff, but some positions will be filled by the manager, while others will be coming from the front office with the new manager’s okay.
Outside of the team record for home runs, everything broke down this year, especially with the pitching staff, as the club has a 5.01 team ERA for 28th in the league and this is a staff that boasts Jacob deGrom in the front.
So yeah, Warthen has to go, along with bullpen coach Ricky Bones and there probably will be vacancies at third base and first base as well.
Long, as mentioned, could stay on – he’s also a candidate to be manager – although he has very little managerial experience.
Other candidates being reported are former Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale, former Mets bench coach Bob Geren, former White Sox manager Robin Ventura – he of the Grand Slam Single. Also mentioned is Houston bench coach Alex Cora and White Sox third base coach Joe McEwing.
All the candidates being mentioned have had some ties with the organization. Both Geren and Cora may be at a disadvantage because their current employers are in the playoffs and the Mets may have to wait until their teams are eliminated. If the Mets want to make a quick hiring, they may look elsewhere.
And if they are planning on replacing the whole coaching staff, they will probably want to have everything done sooner rather than later.
When Collins was hired, Alderson just took the job, so he took his time, but with an eye on contending next year, he will probably want a manager and coaches in place by the time the general managers meetings occur in November.
So it’s going to get busy here at Citi Field. As this season winds down, it will be time to turn the page. Look for a press conference on Monday and then a busy October at Citi Field, with the hot stove turned on early this off-season.
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